(a) Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a liquid impervious liner for use in shipping containers and which is easily insertable and removable from such containers.
The liquid impervious liner of the present invention is particularly, although not exclusively, suitable for the transportation of rawhides which are shipped in various type containers, such as trailers, railroad cars, box containers, etc. These raw animal skins are shipped all over the world to be treated to make leather for use in the manufacture of leather products. In the shipping of these hides, they are normally interleaved with rock salt and a great deal of liquid is secreted from the hides in the form of amino acids. These amino acids, in combination with the rock salt, have created disastrous results to the equipment being used to transport the hides. For example, the acids and the salt will create corrosion to the container and eventually render the container irreparable. Further, during transportation and handling, the liquids are sometimes spilled or leak from the containers and contaminate the environment, such as roads, shipping docks, ships, etc.
(b) Description of Prior Art
Known methods utilized today to solve this problem are proving unsatisfactory and costly. The most commonly used liner known is an extruded polyethylene sheet having a diameter of approximately 18 feet and a length of anywhere from 20 to 45 feet, depending on the length of the container or railcar. This tube-type polyethylene sheet is gathered and crimped at one end and tied together with a piece of wire to give a sausage-skin type appearance. It is then placed with the tied end into the front of a container.
The hides, which normally come on wooden pallets, are placed with an average height of 2 to 3 feet inside the polyethylene sheet which is now inside the container and is loaded until the pallets fill the whole length of the container. The hides, which are normally no more than 3 feet in height, would weigh approximately 40,000 lbs. in a 30 or 35 foot container. It can be seen that loading such a bag in a container is a difficult task.
The major problem with this method is that in the majority of cases the polyethylene sheets are punctured, either as a result of negligent driving of a lift trucks's sharp edges on the pallets, or protruding objects in the container itself such as nails, screws, or even splinters of wood. As a result of these punctures, the amino acids combined with the rock salt, ooze out of the liners thereby corroding the containers or the vehicle used for the transporation of these liners.
In addition to the corrosion factor created by the liquid is the smell and the stench caused by shipping raw hide liners. Upon arrival the smell remains inside the container making it very difficult to ship other commodities as a result of the odours.
Another serious problem as a result of a leaky liner is that it also creates leaky containers and therefore creates a health hazard by having these liquids dispersed on highways, docks, and factories with the spread of bacteria and other harmful microorganisms.
A special container was also developed which is extremely costly and consists of stainless steel floors which are ribbed and underneath these floors is a special catch-basin also fabricated from stainless steel with special taps for the release of the liquids when desired. The drawback to this type of container is its extreme high cost plus the fact that it is limited to the shipment of raw hides only and in many cases containers go back empty. This is a costly solution.